Early results show TMI performed well on hostile-action drill

Specific details on the exercise will be released later this year.

Officials from two federal agencies agree that Three Mile Island and local responders performed well during a hostile-action drill Tuesday evening.

"The emergency organizations have dedicated staff, plans, procedures and equipment that demonstrated the capability to implement a coordinated response to a simulated radiological event within the 10-mile emergency planning zone of Three Mile Island," said Richard Kinard, an acting chairman for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Region 3 office.

Federal and state officials spoke Friday about Tuesday's exercise on a preliminary level, declining to speak about specific results of the drill.

Both FEMA and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission will release detailed reports on the exercise later this year.

"We will look through the reports to see if the drills are sufficient and if there is any room for improvement," Scott Portzline said. "We will have suggestions."

Portzline is a security consultant with Three Mile Island Alert -- a group of activists concerned about state and national regulation of the nuclear-power industry.

Tuesday's exercise, designed to evaluate TMI's emergency plan, differed from previous drills that have typically focused on how responders react to a mock radiological crisis rather than a direct hostile action.

The exercise takes place every other year.

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"This is the first in the nation hostile-action based federally evaluated exercise," said Alan Brinser of the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.

The scenario, which unfolded over three hours, involved a simulated land-based attack leading to the loss of physical control of the plant, said Neil Sheehan, an NRC spokesman, recently.

A group of eight attackers damaged critical equipment and took out the plant's emergency generators, he said.

In response, TMI employees simulated a complete shutdown of the reactor and, at the same time, developed a plan to manage the residual heat without the aid of offsite power, Sheehan said.

In addition, the scenario called for the plant to work with law enforcement to neutralize the attackers while preserving personnel safety.

The NRC evaluated TMI's performance during the exercise.

"Our conclusions are preliminary," said Steve Barr, the NRC's Region 1 Senior Emergency Preparedness Inspector. "The licensee demonstrated that reasonable assurance exists that Exelon could properly implement the Three Mile Island emergency plan in the event of a radiological crisis."

At the same time that TMI was dealing with the scenario, various local schools, organizations and York County emergency personnel practiced their response to the drill.

"We received no indication from an oversight standpoint that there were deficiencies," said Carl Lindquist, a county spokesman. Overall, we thought the drill went well."